Principles for implementing duty of care in health, social care or children’s and young people settings Essay Example for Free

Principles for implementing duty of care in health, social care or children’s and young people settings Essay Ci) Organisational requirements for dealing with complaints The setting should have Concerns and Complaints Policy in place. The main aim of it is to ensure that complaints procedure is properly and effectively implemented and that service users feel confident that their complaints and worries are listened to and acted upon promptly and fairly. When dealing with complaints the setting are to ensure that service users and their representatives, carers and visitors are aware of how to complain and that company provides easy to use opportunities for them to register complaints. A named person is responsible for administration of the procedure. Every written complaint is acknowledged within two working days investigations into written complaints are held within 28 days, all complaints are responded to in writing by the setting complaints are dealt with promptly, fairly and sensitively with due regard to the upset and worry that they cause to both staff and service users. The setting believes that complaints are best dealt with on a local level between the complainant and the home, but if either of the parties is not satisfied by a local process the case should be referred to the Care Quality Commission. Legal requirements for dealing with complaints Legal requirement for dealing with complaints is to follow Health and Social Care Act 2010 and National Minimum Standards complaint policy. These standards require care home managers to have clear procedures that enable service users to make their views, concerns and worries known, and that reassure them that appropriate action will be taken. Policies and procedures for dealing with suspicion or evidence of physical, financial or material, psychological or sexual abuse, neglect, self harm or degrading behaviour should also be put in place. Standards require that every care home: have clear and effective complaints procedure, which includes the stage of, and time scales, for the process. Other legal requirements to take into consideration ‘Data Protection Act 1998’, any information must be stored as stated in the act and all members of staff must be familiar with this and follow the guidelines. Human Rights Act, GSC codes of Practice and the Mental Capacity Act 2005 to empower and protect people who may lack capacity to make some decisions for themselves. Cii) Describe how best to respond to complaints from service users, other practitioners and the family of service users. Respond openly and appropriately to any comment or complaint made to you. If a complaint is made to you then you should ensure the individual making it understands how to use the complaints procedure, explain how it works and when they can expect to receive a response. Offer support in following the procedure to the individual making the complaint if appropriate. Advise your manager. Do not discourage individuals from making complaints or discuss complaints with colleagues or anyone other than your manager and do not promise to sort it out.

Study On The Marshall Plan

Study On The Marshall Plan The Marshall Plan officially known as the European Recovery Program or ERP, it was the primary program during 1947-51 to assist with aid. The United States rebuilt and created a stronger economic democracy for the countries of Europe. At the end of World War II, the United States went on a venture to rebuild Europe. General Marshall went all across the Continent to villages, towns and cities that had been pounded in to rubble. The transportation system was unreliable after the war. Bridges, roads and railroads lay wrecked and destroyed. Germany was ruined. Britain, France, Italy, the Netherlands and other European countries had been badly damaged. Millions of men, women, and children had been killed. Millions more struggled just to find food to eat and a dry place to sleep at night. Britain faced a desperate shortage of coal and electrical power. Trade was deceased, and factories had been crippled across Europe. Farms, mines and manufacturing concerns struggled to provide food, shelter, and clothing. Europe was starved for capital to reinvest in industry. They needed capital with which to relieve a crippling debt burden, and capital to enable Europeans to get their people back to work and adequately feed them. Reconstruction required products from the United States, and the Europeans simply did not have the dollars to purchase such material. The Marshall Plan was set up because of the economic disaster in Europe. It was the coldest winter in the record in1947. People died of starvation or either froze the death. General Marshall wasnt pleased with the conditions that these countries were in. He spoke with President Truman and said the world turn communist if its not jumped started. (Milward, 1945-51.) George Marshall (who had served as a general in the U.S. Army during the war) had been appointed U.S. secretary of state. The tragedies of the European situation became more aware to American leadership. A small recovery was already on its way, fueled by a little publicity of aid from America, mainly in the form of loans, fuel, raw material, goods, wheat, and US machinery to help get factories get back on their feet. The transport system was helped by rebuilding transport system through advis ers. They also had a very large number of Norwegian fishermen, wool for Australian weavers and new tractors for farmers. From July 1945 until December 1947 America funded roughly $11 billion into Europe. (The Marshall Plan, 2008). But this aid oriented toward relief and was largely unfocused. It had not achieved the progress that had been hoped for. A more coherent and effective approach was necessary. In March 1947 Secretary Marshall attended the foreign ministers conference in Moscow. Political and economic developments were not promising. Alarmed at the failure of the conference, on his return from Moscow Mr. Marshall declared that the patience is sinking while the doctors deliberate. (Martin Schain (ed.), 2008) Over the next six weeks the secretary set his department working hard to come up with a workable solution. The plan that eventually emerged was simple and broke new ground. America provided aid to European countries for years and agrees to respond cooperatively. Remarkable as it may seem from a Cold War perspective, this plan even envisioned including the Soviet Union and its newly Eastern European satellites. The goals were straight forward and alleviate the dollar shortage. This provided a catalyst for recovery to head off any provided many solutions. This act alleviated communist threat. The new program would target construction, investment, and new technology. It would include and involve advisers in economic modernization. America wanted a rebuilt Europe, in which nations would act together and cooperate as the American states had done for decades. This new aid would be issued over several years and targeted in a way that would help alleviate balance-of-payments problems. The economies progressed productively and cooperated between capital and labor across the region. This plan was publicized as a hand-up, not a hand out. (Martin Schain (ed.), 2008). On June 5, 1947 George Marshall launched the program during Harvard University graduation ceremony. Marshall described the dangerous situations in Europe and laid out the rationale for American involvement in nothing less than to lend a hand to help rebuild Europe. In what has been called the ultimate commencement address, Marshall argued that Europe must have substantial additional help or face economic, social and political deterioration of a very grave character. (The Marshall Plan, 2008). He thought it was only logical that the United States should do whatever it takes to assist in the return of normal economic health in suffering countries, without the help he felt there wasnt going to be any political stability and no assured peace. He made his point for why his plan was needed: The policy is directed not against any country or doctrine but against hunger, poverty, desperation and chaos. The main purpose of the project was to be a partnership. It would be neither fitting nor efficacious for this government to undertake or to draw up a program designed to place Europe on its feet economically. The State Department was concerned about the speech they felt as if it was understated and short on specifics. By this American publicity was silent. Many peopled failed at first to grasp the importance of the discloser and didnt quite understand what was really going on. However, this was not the case in Europe. British Foreign Secretary Ernest Bevin heard Marshalls radio broadcast speech and immediately contacted French Foreign Minister George Bidault to begin preparing a quick European response to accept the offer. The two agreed that it would be necessary to invite the Soviets as the other allied power. When the Soviet ambassador in Washington saw the plans as creating an anti-Soviet bloc, Joseph Stalin felt that the Soviets should take the offer. Stalin directed the negotiations to be held in Paris regarding the aid; countries in the Eastern Bloc must not agree to accept economic conditions. Stalin changed his prospective on things when he learned that funds would be extended only on a willingness to accept economic cooperation and the catch was that Germany would also be extended more aid, from this he thought that this would wreck the Soviets ability to influence in Western Germany. Stalin suspected a possibility that these Eastern Bloc countries might defy Soviet directives not to accept the aid, potentially causing a loss of control in the Eastern Bloc. In addition, the most important condition was that every country to join the plan would need to have its economic situation independently, but the Soviets could not agree. Bevin and Bidault also insisted that any aid be accompanied by the creation of a unified European economy. But progress was slow, and it took two months to draft a suitable plan. Not until December was the first official version of the plan submitted to Congress. The Marshall Plan, officially called the European Recovery Program, came into being on April 3, 1948. The United States Congress passed the new law and called it the Economic Cooperation Act, which outlined a great program of European aid. By the end of 1952 the Marshall Plan had grossed more than $13 billion in funds to rescue Europe and settle it back on its feet. This was about five to ten percent of the U.S. federal budget and two percent of gross national products. The plan served as a stimulus package to expand European agricultural and industrial production; it helped restore budgets and finances; it stimulated trade among European countries and the rest of the world. The United States wanted to be the first to help with the redevelopment of Europe, by 1949 it became the policy of the Marshall Plan to encourage the unification of Europe. The Marshall Plan was the containment of communism. By rescuing, Europe, America hoped to change the political and economic landscape that communism would to cease economic issues. The Marshall Plan dramatically strengthened the role of American power and prestige in Europe. It played its part in paving the way for the North Atlantic Treaty of 1949, which bought the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) into existence. America saw that a partnership between itself and a strong, united Europe, sharing the same essential values o f freedom and democracy, provided the best means to cease communism and other regional and global problems. The Marshall Plan is considered by many to have been the most effective of all American foreign-aid-programs. It succeeded in preventing the deteriorations of European economies and in so doing helped cease communism. The spirit of George Marshall lives on as America and Europe work toward the same grand vision of shaping the peace, freedom, and prosperity of the world based on democratic values.

Livestock Slaughter Animals

Livestock Slaughter Animals Livestock slaughter: Processes, concerns and regulations The slaughter of livestock animals is an essential part of the world today. There are many methods and tools that can be used on the livestock. Slaughtering is performed for many reasons, the most common would be for human consumption but there is religious slaughter that is also practiced in many parts of the world. There are many laws that are enforced to ensure that the slaughter of livestock is conducted correctly and humanely to guarantee the safety of the products that are used for human consumption. The history of slaughter started as a way of survival, as humans began to become civilized they discovered that it was easier to contain the animals that they previously hunted and to put them on high protein diets to increase their weight. The more weight, the more useable product that came from the animal. Today slaughter is no longer just for survival, it is also used to control the livestock population. Although human consumption is still the primary reason, if animal slaughter did not exist their populations would increase dramatically and would become overpopulated causing inbreeding and risk of disease. The common practice of slaughter starts with the initial killing of the animal, either by a firearm shot to the head or a stunning method which is also applied to the head. The animal is then hoisted up by its hind legs with meat hooks inserted into made slits between the bone and tendon just above the hocks. The processing of a cow starts with the expulsion of the insides. Certain edible parts can be kept such as the heart, liver and intestines which can be used as casings for sausage mixes. This starts with the cutting through the hide on the hind legs just below the meat hooks and continues down the cow so the insides can now be removed. Removal of the insides is easily done and virtually mess free if an empty barrel is pressed against the chest of the animal and the insides are then rolled into the barrel as you cut down the belly. After the animal is cleaned out it is then skinned, which is the removal of its hide. Next the head and legs are removed from the animal, this is usua lly done with a hacksaw or a reciprocating saw specially made for the butchering of animals. The carcass is then cut vertically into two halves and stored into a cooler. The purpose of the cooler is to prevent microorganism growth on the carcass so it will delay decomposition of the carcass. After the carcass is fully chilled it is then brought out into the butchering end of the facility. The end of processing the animal starts with the halving the halves, so the full carcass has now been quartered. Specialty cuts are then made from here like your T-bone steak, chops, ribs, etc. All cuts of meat that are made go through a process called de-boning. It is a simple process where you make the specialty cuts, trim fat, and remove any bones and defaults in the meat. The extra meat, also called â€Å"scraps† are then put into a grinder and made into ground beef. From here it is basically the customers choice on what they desire from the animal and it is then wrapped and put into a storage freezer for the customer to pickup. Ritual, or religious slaughter, is also practiced in many parts of the world and is still practiced today. These slaughter practices are sacred and have to be performed a certain way in order to be considered religious. This type of slaughter is usually performed with the sacrifice of an animal. The difference between regular slaughter houses and ritual slaughter is the way that it is performed. The sacrificial animal has to be terminated in a certain way, usually by bleeding out and some parts of the animal can not be consumed. The two most common types of ritual slaughter are Kosher slaughter and Halal. (J.M. Regenstein, 2003) Kosher slaughter is the law of Kashrut, it is practiced by the Jewish religion but not every one in this religion follows the kosher practice because of the todays society and the practice is thought to be an outdated ritual. This practice is based upon the act of faith and being obedient to God, many of the kosher laws are derived from the Old Testament in the Bible. In order for the food to be considered Kosher, only certain livestock animals can be used such as beef, sheep, goats, and deer with no flaws or diseases. The â€Å"law† of this is that only animals that chew their cud and have cloven hooves are considered to be kosher. (J.M. Regenstein, 2003) The processes of the ritual slaughter is that as much blood as possible has to be drained from the animal, since in this religion it is forbidden to ingest the blood of the animal. The common practice of draining the blood of the animal is to cut the animals throat with an extremely sharp knife. The carcass is then hung so that the blood will drain out, after being hung, the carcass is washed and salted with â€Å"kosher salt† and cooked to well done. Halal is another form of religious slaughter that is practiced by the Muslim religion. Halal means lawful or permitted and the opposite of halal is haram which means unlawful or prohibited. Many foods are referred to as being either halal or haram. The animal must be slaughtered with only the use of an extremely sharp knife. One of the major arguments about religious slaughter is that it is considered cruel to the animal and is not a humane act of slaughtered because of the restraint methods. Most slaughter plants restrain the live animal in an upright position before the initial killing of the animal, but there are also some religious slaughter plants that hang the live animal upside down and then do the killing. Hanging a live animal upside down has many negative affects such as the possibility of harm to the animal and also to the people performing the practice. (J.M. Regenstein, 2003) Minnesota state law states the following as the humane way to terminate a livestock animal. The law requires humane slaughter of livestock, defined as any method of slaughtering livestock which normally causes animals to be rendered insensible to pain by a single blow of a mechanical instrument or shot of a firearm or by chemical, or other means that are rapid and effective; or by methods of preparation necessary to Halal ritual slaughter, Jewish ritual slaughter and of slaughtering required by the ritual of the Islamic or Jewish faith. â€Å"Livestock† under this act is limited to cattle, horses, swine, sheep and goats. Any slaughterer who by act or failure to act violates section 31.591 is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished accordingly. (Minnesota State Statute: 31.59-592) There are many different methods of slaughtering that are practiced. The cheapest would be a firearm shot to head of the animal; the most used would be the stunning method, where there are multiple stunning tools and practices. There is also a captive bolt, electrical, gas and anoxic stunning methods that are used as well. The most controversial method of slaughter would be the stunning of an animal because if not done correctly can cause only nerve damage while the cow is still conscious and alive while being processed. Recent concerns about captive bolt stunning in livestock is the spread of BSE (bovine spongiform encephalopathy), also know as, mad cow disease. A possible risk in using this method is that when the animal is stunned that the brain matter is forced through the jugular vein and passes through the lungs and enters the edible carcass. This poses a threat that if the animal being slaughtered had the BSE prion, an infective protein agent, in their brain and this is passed into the carcass and then later sold for human consumption. (Anil, M.H., 2001) Variant Creutzfeldt Jakob Disease (BSE in humans) is another concern when discussing methods of stunning in slaughter. This disease is caused by the consumption of contaminated central nervous system tissue that had been passed through the body of the animal into the edible parts of the carcass. (Paul Brown, 2001) The most recent topic of interest in the livestock industry today is the Bovine Tuberculosis (TB) and the effect it will have on, not only the cattle farms, but the slaughter houses themselves. The slaughter plants will now have to increase their sanitation practices to prevent the disease from spreading from carcass to carcass if an infected animal were to be brought in to be processed. With limited funding for the TB infected herds, most farmers are just taking their animals in and butchering them because they either cant sell them because their infected or cant afford to have their entire herd tested. This brings up another issue of an overload of animals to be slaughtered and the fact that if they are bringing in cattle that are infected or have the recessive gene that it would be spread to other carcasses. Millions of pounds of red meat are already being commercial produced, which means how much red meat is currently being produced and sold. So, if every farmer were to bring his cattle to slaughter because they cant afford to TB test their herd, the amount of red meat production would increase dramatically and could cause an overload of product. This also causes concern for the consumers who are afraid to purchase the byproducts because of their fear of contracting the diseases that are now the primary concerns in the livestock industry. This graph shows the trend of red meat production of the past two years and the beginning of the 2008 year. As you can readily see that the numbers are already significantly higher than the past two. The slaughter of livestock used to be a way to support the high demand of meat products and to eliminate overpopulation, but with the changing of cultures, it has become a hassle. There are so many health issues and not enough inspectors to oversee all the types of slaughter plants; that diseases are slipping through into products that are later sold to consumers. There are several types of slaughter plants and not all of them are equally inspected either; this could be one of the many problems with the control of disease of the end products. There are generally four types of slaughter plants; FI, TA, NFI, and custom exempt plants. Federally inspected (FI) plants transport meat interstate and they have to employ federal inspectors to comply with USDA standards. Talmedge-Aiken (TA) plants are under the USDA responsibility for inspection. Although considered federally inspected, the inspections are carried out by state employees. Non-federally Inspected (NFI) plants sell and transport only intrastate. There are individual state standards where state inspectors have to comply with and mobile slaughtering units are considered farm slaughter and are excluded from this. Custom-Exempt plants do not sell meat but operate on a custom basis. The animals and meat products are not inspected but the facilities are, and have to meet health standards. Custom-Exempt plants are considered NFI plants and head kill is included in NFI totals. (Agricultural Statistics Board NASS, USDA, 2006, PP 21/23) Every slaughter plant has sanitation requirements and procedures that they have to follow in order to keep their business running. The requirements are met and periodically checked by inspectors, either federally inspected or state inspected. These inspections are made to ensure the quality and safety of the meat that is being sent out from these plants. To ensure this quality of production, humane slaughter of the animal is required also. What is considered humane? This is a rising question to many inspectors and slaughterers, and this question is still unanswered to many of them. What is thought to be humane may in fact not be humane to the animal, and since we cannot feel its pain we cant determine whether the methods used are painless or not. And this is why slaughter laws have come into effect. The first law of humane slaughter was voluntary and came into effect in 1958. The law required that the livestock to be rendered insensible to pain. This was achieved by a blow, gunshot, or electrical or chemical means; it was to be rapid and effective before shackling, hoisting, casting, or gutting. (animal law statutes, citation 7 USC 1901-1907, 2008) The law that is currently enforced by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is known as the Humane Slaughter Act. This act became effective in 1978 and instead of being voluntary this law is mandatory for all slaughter houses. The only exception to the statutory requirement of rendering the animal insensible to pain; is ritual slaughter, which still needs to be approved in order to be carried out. The Humane Slaughter act of 1978 concludes that the use of humane methods on livestock for slaughter results in a safer environment and better working conditions for persons engaging in the slaughtering practices. This also improves benefits for producers, processors, and consumers that tend to accelerate a constant flow of livestock and byproducts across state and country borders. If the humane slaughter of livestock continues, the end products and consumer satisfaction will remain steady and will bring comfort to those who anticipate disease spreading because of unlawful slaughtering practices. (Animal law statutes, citation 7 USC 1901-1907, 2008) The slaughter of livestock is not only a high demand of todays population, but it is also a necessity. It is beneficial to the human race, economy, and is becoming a world renounce trade. With the world today, slaughter has evolved from a way of survival to becoming versatile and plays an important role in the economy. The slaughter of livestock is an essential part of the human lifestyle and will continue to deliver and progress with the ever changing future of the world.

Limitations of the current system :: Computer Science

Limitations of the current system The current system is slow in terms of processing tasks. When a lot of customers are present it is very time consuming to look for individual products because of the large stock room. This means fewer sales transactions are completed so overall there is less profit being made. The customer filing cabinet is taking up a lot id space which can be used for a lot of other things which is un-efficient. Also when a customer comes searching for the customer details is very time consuming and sometimes the details are overlooked so new ones are made causing reputation. If a staff report is created to see who has sold most products can be done by the current system, but it can be very time consuming to go through every invoice. This means that these types of reports are not done despite the ability to do them no one does. The advantage of doing such a report would be to see who doesn’t sell as much so more motivation can be given. The current system also limits the functions you can do because when stock runs out it is hard to find out until sales rep comes looking for the product. This means that they have automatically just lost out on a sale. These are the limitations which with my system shouldn’t occur. New system The new system will enable the users to process tasks quicker and with greater easy. Meaning the new system will have a whole new stock control database. This will definitely improve the time taken to search for a specific product which will mean more customers are attended too. With the aid of security different levels of system uses can be introduced which would mean company information like employee details can be stored on the database. This will also be a good feature because it will mean when a sales transaction is made it will be recorded so if errors arise in human error with sales transactions the system can check to see who carried out the sales transaction. Using the new system more better results and charts can be produced to give a better prospectus of the company finance and how much profit is being made. Also this can lead to queries being performed to see which items sell the most so a larger variety can be introduced or the items that don’t sell that well can be re checked to see why people are not buying them. With the new system it will be easier to do sales transactions because the sales rep doesn’t have to worry about saving the transaction,

Kenny Chesney Essay -- Country Singers Biographies Musicians Essays

Kenny Chesney Introduction: â€Å"No shoes, No shirt, No problems. Blues what blues†¦hey I forgot them. The sun and the sand and a drink in my hand with no bottom and no shoes, no shirt, and no problems! (Lyrics on Demand). These are the lyrics of infamous country legend Kenney Chesney. Kenney Chesney is a leading artist in the country music industry. Earlier in his life, he experienced several set backs and disappointments on his way to becoming a country singer. Nashville, TN was very difficult on this young song writer, as it was the same to others. However, with persistants and dedication, Kenny Chesney finally made a name for himself, and is now a â€Å"Big Star.† Country Music History Unlike other genres of music, country music did not begin until August 1, 1927. On this day in Bristol, Tennessee, Ralph Peer signed Jimmie Rodgers and the Carter Family to recording contracts for Victor Records. These two acts set the tone for others to follow – Rodgers with his unique singing style and the Carters with their extensive recording of old-time music (Roughstock’s History of Country Music). However, it was not until 1950 when the â€Å"Nashville Sound† began. The â€Å"Nashville Sound† is defined as a blend of pop and country music. This is the category of country music in which Kenny Chesney falls into. K.C's History: Kenney Chesney grew up in a very small town called Luttrell, Tennessee. There, he was what you would call a typical â€Å"red neck.† He was a starter on his high school football team and his heart was broken by his high school sweetheart. Additionally, he idolized country singers like â€Å"Conway and Waylon, George Jones and Lefty Frizzell, Willie nelson and George Strait and Merle haggard, Vern Gosdin and John Conley and whatever ... ...Chesney has sold over eight million albums. Conclusion: Kenney Chesney has definitely made a name for himself in the country music industry. Through his had work and persistence, this guy from a small town in Tennessee has become a â€Å"Big Star.† Although Kenney Chesney is known thought the world, Chesney said for me, it’s â€Å"about the guy in the baseball hat and the girl that guy thinks is pretty. Real life the double platinum boy, who finds his solace in the ocean, realizes doesn’t’ always who up with the glided edges and profound pronouncements – you gotta find the truth as it rolls by with tan lines, an easy smile and a twinkle in its eye. And you know, so far, that’s worked just fine† (Official Website). Works Cited: href="www.roughstock.com"Rough Stock href="www.kchesney.com"The Official KC Homepage href="www.lyricsondemand.com"Lyrics on Demand

Political Philosophy and Major Theme Machiavelli Essay

Machiavelli had a true and abiding love for Florence. He wanted to make Florence great and also find himself a job, as he lost his when the Medici family came into power. He dedicated his book on political science, The Prince, to Lorenzo Medici in the hopes that Lorenzo would be impressed and offer him a job. However, Lorenzo ignored the book and Machiavelli. The Prince is a didactic examination of political power, how to achieve it, maintain it, and expand it. Machiavelli does not take into consideration what is morally right, or amoral, only what is useful and useless. The book is more like a technical manual, and technical manuals only state the facts. The book defines what turns a mere man into a great ruler and what turns a great ruler into a mere man. Machiavelli’s book of politics is unique because it is so realistic. He does not place man in a false utopia where man live in eternal peace and harmony, everyone doing good to one another for the good of the public whole. Rather, he writes a manual where there are political conflicts and tensions. Machiavelli writes how a prince should deal with these conflicts and tensions. He condones cruelty, punishment, religion, rewards, compassion, and integrity to achieve power. Whatever means to achieve the end. QUESTIONS 2. Discuss Machiavelli’s â€Å"heroes†. Select one and discuss the traits that he finds admirable in that person. Be specific. Machiavelli’s heroes are Moses, Cyrus, Romulus and Theseus. They all formed civilizations. When Machiavelli talks about his heroes he is speaking of how to acquire a princedom. As Isiah Berlin says in his essay, Machiavelli admired these heroes because they were high-minded, tough, and tough enough to use brutality against the few, to help the public good of the princedom. He especially admired Moses because he was worthy to talk to God. Moses had the opportunity to create a new civilization with the Israelites because they were being treated badly by the Pharaoh . Therefore, Moses took advantage of their discontent with their new master and led them in a revolt. Eventually creating a new civilization. Machiavelli admired Moses because of his strength of character that carried him through the difficult trouble of gaining power. 3. Discuss Machiavelli’s opinions on the uses of cruelty to accomplish certain goals. The Prince is about the ways to achieve political power, with no preference for the way in which it is achieved. Machiavelli does not advocate unnecessary cruelty. His book is only about how to obtain and keep a princedom. Machiavelli believes that cruelty is sometimes necessary to acquire or/and keep political power. Machiavelli recognized that in the time he lived a political ruler would have to use cruelty, he writes, â€Å"The new prince, above all princes, cannot possibly avoid the name of cruelty†. He also states in Chapter VIII that cruelty may be useful sometimes in achieving certain ends, but it would bring no glory. 1. What does Machiavelli think of â€Å"the people† in the course of human history? Machiavelli refers to â€Å"the people† as â€Å"the masses†, lots of times. He realizes that â€Å"the people† are a dominant force in politics, whether it is a democracy or a republic. When a princedom is added to an already established kingdom, he writes that the customs must be the same between the two and that no new taxes or laws should be enacted. To do so would cause the people to revolt and the recently acquired princedom would be in jeopardy. Machiavelli realizes a prince cannot keep political power if his people hate him. A hostile population may abandon him or turn against him when hostile noble attack, then the prince will lose the kingdom. Machievelli also believed that a prince may â€Å" make an example of a very few† be execution of severe punishment, but that letting the population bring disorder among themselves was bad for the whole community. Therefore, Machiavelli was wary of â€Å"mob rule†. Machiavelli realizes that â€Å"the people† have to be relatively happy for a princedom to be healthy. 4. In general, what is Machiavelli telling his â€Å"Prince† with regard to the use of power? Machiavelli’s entire book is about power. How to achieve a princedom with power. Power over â€Å"the people† with cruelty (or punishment); power over other princes with deceit or a bigger army or powerful friends; power over the army with cruelty and/or money. He speaks of control over captured cities by dividing them into factions, disarming the people or forming hostilities among the people. All of these things achieve power. A prince must also be more powerful than his counselors, listening and gleaning knowledge but making his own decisions; because a weak prince will do whatever his counselors tell him and then his counselors will take over the princedom. EVALUATION OF BOOK I think this is one of the most interesting books I’ve read in a while. It’s dry, realistic, terse, and to the point. It’s also very easy to read (I was pleasantly surprised). All of the historical connotations are especially interesting. I read that Hitler, Mussolini, and Lenin found Machiavelli valuable reading; I would like to delve more into that one!! In the Renaissance religion and learning were beginning to be thought of as separate and Machiavelli was a man of his time. His book was entirely didactic and did not have a trace of religion. He spoke of cruelty and deceit in matter-of-fact tones and kept his book strictly a manual, with no judgements. In our modern time, we have to discern his book in the same manner that he wrote it. If we do not, we will not understand what he was writing.

The Black Walnut Tree

Dana Doherty â€Å"The Black Walnut written by Mary Oliver, concerns the narrator's and her mother's struggle to decide whether they will have a tree on their property cut down. If they decide to have the black walnut tree removed and sell it for lumber, they will be able to pay off their home's mortgage; however, if they remain faithful to the tree and their heritage, they risk the tree collapsing onto their home resulting in its destruction.The start of the poem introduces the debate outright. However, as the speaker of the piece, or the author herself, makes her case it seems rather one sided, all arguments are in favor of cutting down the tree. The tone is literal, all making reference to the physical damages that could be caused if the tree remains. The author uses diction to convey this tone using words such as â€Å"likely† and â€Å"navy's† which add not only a casual and conversational element to the piece, but also one Of doubt.The poem shifts as the speaker describes â€Å"but something brighter than money moves in our blood- an edge sharp and quick as a trowel. † Here is where Oliver begins to employ figurative language as this â€Å"something† is making reference to the symbolic meaning behind the tree. As the poem mutinous the narrator makes reference to dreams of her father and her and of her mother's willingness to crawl with shame in their â€Å"father's backyard. Harvesting from the tree, as suggested by the piece, is a way of connecting with the agricultural ways of their forefathers. The tree is their connection to the past and the debate is not so much over the mere life of a tree, but between living comfortably and sticking to their roots. The end of the poem speaks about the tree as it continues to remain in the yard. The author describes the way her mother and her would â€Å"crawl in shame at the emptiness we'd made. † if they were to sell the tree.As the poem comes to a close the author writes †Å"so the black walnut tree swings through another year of sun and leaping winds, of leaves and bounding fruit. † This passing of time is representative of the joys and sorrows, the rise and falls of a life. They live with the presence of the tree, a life where they live in a way that remains close to their roots and their family. However, the closing words of the piece make references to the tree and the way it continues to endure the â€Å"cracking whip of the mortgage† suggesting that the struggle continues on.